By Steve Barrett
Western Bulldogs players launched into wild celebrations at a function room in Launceston, having sweated on a finals spot for two hours following their round 23 victory over Hawthorn earlier in the day.
Finals-bound coach Luke Beveridge earlier conceded his team hadn’t been close to setting the pace with the premiership favourites throughout 2022, but Collingwood’s one-point win over Carlton at the MCG was enough to tip the Blues out of the eight and for the Dogs to snatch the last spot.
The Dogs jumped around and embraced one another when the final siren blew in the epic Carlton-Collingwood match at the ’G, living to fight another day after a home-and-away season during which they have rarely been able to replicate the form that carried them to last year’s grand final against Melbourne.
Beveridge knows from personal experience that new contenders and opportunities will arise following the finals restart, having won the flag from seventh in 2016 and making the grand final from fifth last year.
The Dogs beat Hawthorn by 23 points, and will play finals with a won-loss record of 12-10 and a percentage of 108.9. Carlton have also won 12 games and finished with a percentage of 108.3.
Including this weekend, the Bulldogs have only finished inside the top eight after four rounds this year. Conversely, the heartbroken Blues finished every round in the top eight, except this one.
Sam Darcy celebrates a goal with Bulldogs teammates.Credit: AFL Photos
“If we make it and Carlton miss out, they’ll be stiff when you consider their body of work for the first half to two-thirds of the year,” Beveridge told reporters in Launceston in his post-match press conference, which took place during the still unresolved Collingwood-Carlton classic.
“In this game you don’t really deserve anything; you just get what you earn. Ultimately, we haven’t been a team that has been anywhere near the top of the ladder.
“But as we know, once you get to a finals series, things open up again and you’re not quite sure who the new contenders are.”
The Bulldogs had to overcome bouts of inaccuracy and inefficiency before eventually overwhelming Hawthorn after half-time. The Dogs had more scoring shots (27-14), inside-50s (71-39) and clearances (49-22) but didn’t quite seal it until well into the fourth term.
“I think any year you make the finals it’s an achievement because it’s an even competition,” he said. “You know how difficult it is.
“Every team comes up against their own obstacles and you’ve got to be able to hurdle those and march on with some kind of momentum. We’ve had setbacks but we’ve stayed in it.
“It [finals] is reward for hard work, regardless of where you finished the previous year. Sometimes it all seems lost, but we’ve hung in there. And here we are.”
Weight of numbers eventually paved the path to victory for the Bulldogs.
The Dogs found themselves 18 points in arrears early in the second term at UTAS Stadium in Launceston, despite dominating both the contest and the territory early.
In the first half, Hawthorn defender James Sicily amassed 23 touches and 13 marks, continually undermining the Dogs’ attacking forays, aided by Blake Hardwick.
Emerging tagger Finn Maginess, who has performed admirable corralling jobs in recent weeks on Shai Bolton, Touk Miller and Jy Simpkin, successfully shadowed Bailey Smith all afternoon.
Things weren’t much better inside the Dogs’ other arc. Jack Gunston showcased his sheer class with three first-half goals before finishing with four and Hawthorn were able to make considerable hay from their comparatively limited entries.
The Bulldogs did enough to scrounge their way into a slender lead at the main interval after Cody Weightman goaled with his first touch, 39 seconds before the half-time siren, before the second half was played almost exclusively on their terms.
In the third term, the Dogs won the clearances 11-3 and inside-50s 19-4 but a 1.8 return in front of the sticks kept the Hawks in the hunt.
Dylan Moore goaled inside the opening half-minute of the fourth to trim the margin to four points but Hawthorn had little left in the tank and could only hold the fort for so long and play continued to be on the Bulldogs’ terms.
Hawks star Ben McEvoy is chaired from the field after his last game.Credit: Getty Images
Their renowned engine room, led on Sunday by Tim English and Josh Dunkley, with cameos from Adam Treloar and Marcus Bontempelli, was superior all afternoon and gradually ground Hawthorn down.
BYE BYE BIG BEN
Retiring Hawthorn captain Ben McEvoy, playing his 252nd and last AFL match, got his team off the mark after the Bulldogs registered the opening two majors. The highly respected 33-year-old, who spent more than three months on the sidelines after suffering a broken neck in a horror training accident this year, goaled on the back of a neat handball from debutant Jack Saunders. Late in the second stanza, McEvoy slotted his second major to give the Hawks the lead after outmarking Ed Richards in typical “Big Boy” style.
YOUNGSTERS ON THE BOARD
Sam Darcy closed Hawthorn’s second-quarter lead then erased it altogether with two goals in a minute – his first two in AFL ranks. The son of Bulldogs legend Luke Darcy slotted his first after snaring a powerful mark among a pack of five players. The Dogs then surged forward from the next centre bounce and the chain ended with Darcy outpositioning James Sicily for another strong mark, before he wheeled around and snapped truly with his left foot.
On the very next play, Hawks ruckman Max Lynch secured the centre hit-out and clearance and the ball found its way down the other end. Jaeger O’Meara’s handball out the back landed in the lap of debutant Jack Saunders, who charged in to his maiden AFL goal to put Hawthorn back in front.
WESTERN BULLDOGS 2.1 8.4 9.12 12.15 (87)
HAWTHORN 4.1 8.1 9.2 10.4 (64)
GOALS
W Bulldogs: Naughton 3, Smith 3, Darcy 2, Weightman, Bontempelli, Treloar, Hunter.
Hawthorn: Gunston 4, Moore 2, McEvoy 2, Morrison, Saunders.
BEST
W Bulldogs: Dunkley, Bontempelli, Treloar, Richards.
Hawthorn: Sicily, Hardwick, O’Meara, Ward.
INJURIES
W Bulldogs: Vandermeer (knee).
CROWD 13,105 at UTAS Stadium.
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